From finding the best people to launch retail trends to building the new data infrastructure, Terry Trailblazers help build more inclusive and productive workplaces in every industry. This year the Terry College recognizes four alumni committed to mentoring and developing leaders at their companies and in their communities.
They will share insights on service and success at the 2023 Terry Trailblazers panel discussion on Feb. 23 at 1 p.m. in the Stelling Family Study. Students can also watch the roundtable on Zoom. Following the roundtable, students can sign up for flash mentoring sessions with the Trailblazers.
This year’s class of Terry Trailblazers are:
Kim Adams (BBA ’99)
Adams serves as vice president for diversity, equity and inclusion and talent acquisition at Ulta Beauty. As the first person to serve in this role at the beauty retailer, Adams works to amplify Ulta’s commitment to its DEI initiatives in its hiring and promotion practices.
Before joining Ulta Beauty, she served as vice president of human resources, diversity, equity and inclusion culture at Papa John’s International and vice president of engagement, inclusion and diversity at Equifax.
In addition to her work in the corporate world, Adams serves on the boards of the Atlanta Community Food Bank, True Colors Theatre and LEAD Atlanta. She was named one of Diversity Global magazine’s Top 15 Champions of Diversity, one of Atlanta Business League’s 2022 Top 100 Women of Influence, and an Outstanding Georgia Citizen by Georgia’s Secretary of State and House of Representatives. She is also a proud and active member of Delta Sigma Theta sorority.
Lael Chappell (BBA ’06)
Chappell serves as the chief marketing and business development officer at Desq, a specialty accelerator platform that empowers entrepreneurial underwriters to develop insurance products for emerging technology companies.
He is consistently recognized for his contributions to the insurance industry and as an ambassador of DEI principles. Most recently, he was recognized in the 2023 Global 100 Class by Insurance Business of America as well as a recipient of the inaugural Insurance Brokers’ Association of New York Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Excellence Award in 2022.
Chappell served on the Terry Young Alumni Board and named to the UGA Alumni Association’s 2022 40 Under 40. He is a member of One Hundred Black Men of New York, a mentor for the Global Insurance Accelerator, a mentor for the InsurTech Fund Digital MGA Lab, an innovation advisor for Lloyd’s Lab, serves as a global advisor for the Hong Kong-based Phoenix Foundation and is a member of the Forbes Business Development Council.
Chloé Kelley (BBA ’06)
Kelley is an executive vice president and account manager at PIMCO’s New York office, focusing on institutional client servicing.
Since joining PIMCO in 2013, she has built a more welcoming and diverse workforce at the investment firm. She is a founding member of PIMCO Black and chair of PIMCO’s client management inclusion and diversity council. She also co-leads PIMCO’s emerging broker outreach program.
Before joining PIMCO in 2013, she was a credit research analyst at J.P. Morgan and managed core fixed-income portfolios for institutional clients at EARNEST Partners. She is a CFA charter holder and holds the CAIA designation.
Outside of the corporate world, Kelley serves as a trustee of the University of Georgia Foundation where she is on the investment committee and audit and corporate governance committee. She is on the Terry College Alumni Board, where she serves on the DEI committee. She is also a founding member of the executive committee of the GenLove board for God’s Love We Deliver.
Kelley is a recipient of the UGA Blue Key Young Alumnus Award and was recognized on the 40 under 40 lists of the UGA Alumni Association and Black Women in Asset Management.
Ameet Shetty (BBA ’96)
Shetty serves as chief data officer for the Pilot Corp., leading strategy and deployment for the company’s data and business intelligence to reduce risk and enable strategic business growth.
Before joining Pilot, Shetty served as chief data and analytics officer at McDonald’s Corp. and at SunTrust Bank.
Leading the industry in best data practices earned Shetty Oracle’s North American Big Data Leader of the Year award in 2016 and the Technology Association of Georgia’s Creative Innovation Award for Analytics in 2017. He also received the Celent Model Bank Award for Data Infrastructure Modernization in 2018.
He also serves on the Terry College Alumni Board.